The Loom

It was tucked up against my chest under the layers of shirts and with every step I could feel the soft leather cover against my skin. I tightened the belt around the outside of my coat which acted as a barrier keeping the precious notebook from sliding down away from me.

It meant too much. To me. To both of us.

The morning was warm, more so than it had been in quite some time. As I strode up the steep ridge I could feel the sweat starting to collect at the small of my back and I was wishing I would have chosen a better path.

An easier path, but I knew it was too late for that.

I squinted against the beams of sunlight seeping between the trees. He was there, at the top waiting patiently for me. I didn’t even need to see him to know the look on his face was one of worry like he was questioning whether or not I’d make it.

I nodded noticeably, assuredly up to him even though the sun blinded me. This seemed to placate him and he stepped out of sight further up the ridge. All along I knew better and taking my time was the quickest way to get seen.

To get caught.

So I took a breath quickening my stride and wiped my sleeve over my wet brow. When I finally got to the top he was nervously kicking at a pile of pine needles, pushing them around with the tip of his boot.

He didn’t raise his gaze when I stood in front of him which I knew wasn’t good. He was second guessing all we’d discussed. I could see the doubt clearly paining his face. And standing at the top of a peak wasn’t helping. He’d be scanning the forest for movement; for rangers.

“Finn,” I started as I tugged at the large belt tied around the outer part of my jacket, but he surprised me. He shifted his gaze, looking up across the ridge.

“That way is best.” He pointed. “Keep close. We’ll travel low and fast.”

I simply nodded, not wishing to push my luck any further.

Before I knew it he was sprinting between tree trunks, his steps quick and calculated. I kept up but with great effort and in my fatigue I struggled to keep my movements quiet.

I couldn’t think. All I could concentrate on were my steps.

Every few seconds I would glance up to see his deep brown jacket shifting back and forth just ahead of me then my gaze would fall back to the terrain underfoot as I hurdled a fallen tree. I glanced up again and his height was gone.

I froze then instinctively ducked down just beside the shelter of the rotting trunk.

The forest was dead quiet.

It was then that I saw him crouched between two boulders, his eyes locked on me. He motioned for me to hold then pointed to a small ridge just to the East. Smoke was billowing from a small fire surrounded by packs and sleeping bundles all laid in long lines.

Yet they were empty. The whole camp was empty.

I breathed a shaky breath then gazed up. The frame of the branches were etched all around the sky which held a vision of bright pink streaking through light blue.The color captivated me for a long moment and for the life of me I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen such a vibrant hue. The others spoke the names of the colors like that recalling them from photos or fabrics.

There was a snap of a branch and I yanked my chin down to see Finn being pulled from the boulders by two men.

“Shit.” I mouthed.

I knew he’d be executed without a second thought.

Desperately, he looked up at me then began fighting them off. My fingers combed the fallen leaves and underbrush until I found a jagged rock that fit well in my hand.

I stood.

Took aim.

And threw.

It hit one of the men directly in the temple.

He fell to the ground immediately. Stunned, his hand touched the side of his head where a small stream of blood was now falling.

The hit caused the second man to zero in on me, now standing clearly in the morning sun.

I didn’t wait.

I ran.

My thighs tensed as I took the incline at full sprint, my arms pumping wildly at my sides. I glanced over my shoulder and saw that he was following me.

I could only hope that Finn had gotten away while the other was disoriented. My breath was ragged as I came to the peak glancing once more down at the ranger lumbering behind me.

I ran into something solid that hadn’t been there the last moment I’d looked. A pair of hands found the edges of my jacket and held me in place tightly.

I struggled as I looked at the man whom the hands belonged to.

“Got ourselves a pair of runners.” He voiced to the collection of rangers behind him. “What do you think they’re gonna give me for a pair of scrawny deserters huh?”

I grabbed for the hunting knife sheathed at my back and managed to get it out from beneath my layers just as his grip adjusted on my coat pulling down my hood.

His eyes widened when my hair fell down my shoulders from under the cover. Even with my face caked with dirt he knew what I was.

Instinctively, he glanced at the rangers behind him and in that moment I slid the blade up in between his rib cage.

He let go of me immediately.

I didn’t realize until I was weightless that he’d been holding me steady.

I grabbed for him well, for anything really. He stumbled back out of reach, the butt of the knife still poking out from his side.

The last thing I saw were the branches of the trees cracking through the hazy pink sky. The last thing I felt was the small black leather notebook slide softly across my skin. The last thing I heard was the breath leaving my lungs as I fell backward.

**********************************************************************

There was warmth on my face, radiating in an inconsistent but comforting rhythm.

I heard the crackle of wood being consumed by flames. I didn’t dare open my eyes or shift my weight even though in that moment there was nothing I wanted more than to simply stretch my sore legs.

I could hear them speaking, in whispers. It was all in code which rangers were known for. If they had uncovered that Finn was an actual deserter then they wouldn’t bother speaking in codes. He knew them.

Obviously, they hadn’t worked that out yet.

Then I heard footsteps, purposeful and headed in my direction. I felt someone crouch over me then grab at the sides of my coat and lift me again.

“I know you’re awake.”

Slowly, I slid my eyes open taking in the face of the ranger looming over me.

“You got me pretty good.” He motioned to his side where a compression patch peaked out of the hole in his uniform. It was pulsing slightly so obviously it was already stitching the wound.

“I should have aimed higher.” I said simply.

He nodded slightly, amused. He stood straight and stepped away from me.

“What the hell are the pair of you doing across the boundary?”

I kept my face neutral and my mouth still.

He looked down at his chest, then back at my face. In a swift move he stood taking me with him, hoisting me to my feet by my jacket.

“Any other weapons on your person?”

I shook my head.

He eyed me, releasing my jacket and taking two steps backward. I saw him reach into the deep pockets of his uniform and my stomach dropped as he pulled out the short knife with a burnt limb handle that I kept tucked away in my right boot.

Instantly, my hands drew over my chest. The soft leather rectangle was gone.

I looked back at the ranger. It was there in his hand.

Without thinking I moved toward him grabbing frantically for the worn leather notebook. He extended his arm out keeping me just far enough away from it.

“Imagine my surprise to not only find two deserters. One of them a woman with this hidden away under her clothes.”

I had been focusing solely on the ranger in front of me, I didn’t realize we’d gained an audience. All the rangers were haphazardly circled around the two of us now. One of them had a hold of Finn, his arms bound behind his back. We held each other’s gaze for a long moment and I knew what he was trying to convey, but I wasn’t going anywhere without him or the book.

“Lads, you know what’s in this plain little scrap of bits?”

From the group a few “whats” and “tell us” emanated enthusiastically.

“I was ready to toss it on the fire, when I saw this poking out of one of the pages.” He thumbed open the book and pulled out something small.

Yet the group recognized it.

“The last photograph I saw was in a museum, right before the Fall.”

He looked at it for a long moment then passed it to the ranger closest to him. One by one, they held it gingerly and studied it silently.

“Who is she?” He asked me. “The woman in the photo?”

I remained silent.

“There’s a lot in this book. Sketches, words and a few more photos.” He paused turning on his heel slightly to let his words carry and tucked my book back into his pocket. “And the added surprise of finding a woman outside the colonies.”

Finn struggled at this statement.

“And what’s he too you? Huh? Brother? Lover?” He looked at Finn then back at me. “Is that why you’re both sneaking across the boundary?”

The ranger dipped and picked something up from the ground just a step or two away from him.

“Where’s my head? All that aside, there’s still the matter of what’s in your pack.”

He threw Finn’s pack down on the ground at my feet.

The top was unzipped and the contents rustled in the wind slightly, the face of an old man was centered on the small rectangles along with symbols, words and numbers.

“A little over $20,000 in contraband.”

The ranger raised an eyebrow waiting for me to comply his questions. I kept my stoic silence. He smirked and stepped back toward me.

“You’re across the boundary. In the middle of nowhere. No one would even know what happened to you.”

“Evie,” Finn spoke my name simply. “Tell them.”

“Come on Finn. They're rangers, it wouldn’t matter why. They’ll take it and kill us either way.”

The ranger nodded slightly,

“True but I am curious about the contraband. My understanding is currency is only housed in the treasury. The colony doesn’t even accept it as payment anymore.”

When I didn’t answer the ranger grabbed the pack by the strap and dangled it over the fire.

“I’d be willing to bet whoever you’re smuggling this across the boundary for wouldn’t be too happy if you arrived empty handed. Would they?”

Finn struggled.

“I’ll tell you.” He shouted but the ranger restraining him punched him in the side rendering him silent.

“No I wanna hear it from her.” The ranger replied.

“Like I said, you’re going to do what you’re going to do. It makes no difference why we’re transporting it.” I answered reluctantly.

The ranger chuckled shaking his head in disbelief.

“Darlin, I want an answer.”

He tossed the pack to the ground away from the proximately of the flames. Then he pulled the notebook from his pocket and held it over the fire.

I breathed, pursed my lips.

“I’ll tell you everything.”